Haney Says Hearn Switched Up After Leaving Matchroom

Devin Haney says he believes that the reason promoter Eddie Hearn has been saying negative stuff about him is that he can no longer make money off him. He’s no longer signed for Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing stable.

Hearn’s Critiques Listed

“Eddie Hearn has said a lot of things over the years. He said that I couldn’t take a punch. He said Norman would beat me,” said Devin Haney to Boxing King Media. “He said I like to overprice myself. He said a lot of different things over the years, and it just shows his character.”

Hearn mentioned recently that Haney is fighting for money now rather than legacy. He’s being paid well. What made Hearn likely say this is that Devin chose not to fight Sandor Martin when he held the WBC 140-lb title. Hearn’s comment about Haney not being able to take a punch is based on how he was hurt against Jorge Linares and Ryan Garcia. The way Devin fought after his loss to Ryan, moving constantly, gave the impression that he was afraid to get hit.

Promoter Sour Grapes?

“When I was with him, he was saying one thing. Now that I’m not with him anymore, he’s saying another. That’s how promoters do. Once they can no longer make money and capitalize on you anymore, they turn sour. It’s nothing new. It’s not the first time that Eddie has done that, and it won’t be the last,” said Haney.

Hearn is just calling it as he sees it. He points out that Devin put in a boring performance in his last two fights against Brian Norman Jr. and Jose Ramirez. These are the same things that fans are saying. It’s not that Hearn is saying something that isn’t valid.

Devin held all night against Norman Jr, and looked like a bigger version of a Sea Lamprey. He wouldn’t let go of Norman Jr and dragged the fight to a crawl, stalling out the rounds. In Devin’s previous fight against Ramirez, he ran around the ring for 12 rounds last May in their fight at Times Square in New York.

“I want to fight the best fighters in the world. I want to unify the division. Any one of those champions, I would love to fight,” said Haney.

The three champions that Devin is interested in fighting at 147 don’t qualify as being among the “best fighters in the world.” They fit a more accurate description; they are paper champions.

Haney’s 147 Target List

The three champions Haney is targeting at 147

• Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero – WBA
• Lew Crocker – IBF
• Mario Barrios – WBC

It’s not that those are fights that would bring Haney a ton of money. If he captures one or more of those titles, it gives him leverage to get a better financial deal in the rematch with Ryan Garcia in 2026. If Haney thought he had no chance of beating any of these champions. He wouldn’t be targeting them because he doesn’t want to mess up his rematch with Ryan.